SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., November 14, 2008â€” Fingerprinting and digital watermarking (DWM) are two content identification technologies that reach beyond the traditional DRM (Digital Rights Management) philosophy of policing and restricting the distribution of content.Â In next-generation applications, these technologies can enable monetization of content that is distributed virally via peer-to-peer, social networks, or user-generated content sites.

An excellent example is the test project that MySpace and MTV Networks are now advancing.Â MySpace is using a system from Auditude that combines an interactive ad serving platform with video fingerprinting.Â When specific content from MTV Networks is identified using the system, instead of issuing a take-down notice, the system automatically associates an interactive advertisement with the content.Â Thus, both companies transform un-licensed content (some might call pirated content) from a negative to a positive.Â Interactive advertising on content distributed virally is only one of several possible applications for content identification in advanced interactive business models.Â Among the possibilities are:

Improved advertising metrics

Improved tracking of usage and distribution across non-linear networks and multiple platforms.

Automatic, multi-network, multi-platform association of targeted advertising with a given piece of content

Association of content or advertising with e-commerce options

Association to metadata, or other content

These are just the types of applications that MultiMedia Intelligence predicted early in 2008.Â This market is at its nascent stages and has yet to solidify into an even moderately predicable market.Â It seems reasonable this market could develop into a stand-alone market of similar scope as that of digital music metadata.Â Thus, MultiMedia Intelligence believes the market for software and applications that leverage content identification in advanced interactive business models could surpass $150 Million in 5 years.Â Currently, digital watermarking and fingerprinting technologies are making internet and network monitoring viable. As non-linear distribution of digital media continues to proliferate, this technology is bound to become more important in providing critical visibility and control for copyright owners. Next generation applications, like the MySpace initiative, will leverage the same technology to associate and target advertising to specific content titles, thus monetizing the P2P and UGC content.

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About MultiMedia Intelligence

MultiMedia Intelligence, a market research and consultancy firm, specializes on the markets and technologies for delivering and monetizing digital content and services across multiple platforms. We look beyond the classic 'three screens,' which include TVs, mobile handsets, and computers. We put markets into the broader context of the industry ecosystems that are converging and changing traditional business models.